Seattle Sun Newspaper - Vol. 7, Issue 2, February 2003

Copyright 2003 Seattle Sun. Please feel free to use the article and photos below in your research. Be sure to quote the Seattle Sun as your source.

Creativity not just in books for Meadowbrook author

By LEAH WEATHERSBY

Meadowbrook author, artist, wine-maker and gardener DeEtta Demaratus has so many hobbies it's a wonder she ever finds time to write.

Perhaps it's her Renaissance woman approach to life that helped slow the writing of her first novel to a full decade. But now, "The Force of a Feather" is on bookshelves (The University of Utah Press, $27.95).

"Feather," which was published this last April, is a historical novel based on a real-life abolition trial in 19th century California. The book was originally inspired by an exhibit about Biddy Mason, one of the slaves freed in that trial. (Mason became a wealthy philanthropist after gaining her freedom.)

The book also tells the life stories of the other major participants in the trial, including Hannah another slave, Robert and Rebecca Smith, the slave owners, and Benjamin Hayes, the judge in the case.

Demaratus didn't just relate history in her novel. She intermingled stories from her own life.

"The historian is always a person who is interpreting," Demaratus said. "I wanted to give you a sense of the person who's writing this story."

In fact, the author's personal history is nearly as exciting as that of her slave and slave-owner subjects. Although Demaratus, 60, likes to tell people she's from Arkansas, her childhood actually was spent moving from state to state. Her father, an engineer, worked on dams and other projects that eventually led the family to Washington.

At 16, Demaratus left to live on her own. She dropped out of the high school she had been attending in the Ozarks Mountains and hitchhiked to Hollywood, Calif. (Oddly enough, the main item she took with her was a set of encyclopedias that her parents had entrusted to her.)

Although Demaratus had dreams of acting, she spent her time in Los Angeles studying art. Eventually, she earned her high school diploma, and enrolled in the University of Washington.

While academics weren't hard for Demaratus ("I always knew I was smart," she says), she faced a personal challenge as an undergrad: a short-lived marriage that left her a single parent with a daughter.

Rather than hold her back, the baby became Demaratus' traveling companion. The two went first to Columbia University in New York where Demaratus studied film, and then to Florence, Italy, where she earned a masters degree in Fine Arts.

Literally, no wall could stop Demaratus. Even though the university at which she'd first planned to study in Italy was on a general strike when she arrived, she found a way to get her degree.

Wanting to keep busy, Demaratus decided to check out the art department at a Catholic school called Rosary College. She couldn't find the gate when she got there. Undaunted, she climbed over the school's formidable wall and tumbled down into the gardens right in front of a nun. The sister marched Demaratus straight into the admissions office her choice was either enroll as a student or be labeled a trespasser.

After returning from Italy, Demaratus continued to travel, though she spent most of her time in Washington state.

"I think that I'm basically a westerner," Demaratus said. "I like informality (and) openness."

She held administrative jobs for Group Health, Harborview Hospital and KUOW Radio.

Those day jobs helped Demaratus pursue her real interests, including writing. Her first major success came in the late '80s when she sold a movie script to Paramount. Like her recent novel, the script also centered on a real-life trial involving race relations, but it never went into production, even after years of rewrites.

"Everything you've heard about Hollywood is true," Demaratus said. "Your script gets put into a sausage factory."

Demaratus had a better experience working on "Feather." She spent years traveling the country, examining all kinds of historical material and speaking to descendants of her subjects.

With her research done and a publisher interested in the project, Demaratus still faced a big problem. Conflicted between documentation and dramatization, she didn't know whether to write a history or a novel. Finally her editor suggested a hybrid that would meld personal stories with historical fact.

Demaratus hasn't yet become full-time writer. She still has a day job. She recently purchased her first home, which leads to plenty of distractions. For example, the previous owner grew grapes, so Demaratus is teaching herself to make wine. She plans to redo the garden in an Italian style. And finish a bronze sculpture for the yard. She's also working on two books, one set during the Civil War, the other during the Renaissance.

As always, finding something interesting to do isn't Demaratus's challenge. It's deciding what to do first.